The Red Moon
by reychop
Summary: Summary: -AU- . Konoha had been terrorized by a strange beast. Some say it's a humanoid fox while other say it's a demon. What mysteries lies behind these attacks? Will Sasuke ever realize that the one closer to him is in grave danger? SasuNaru -OOC-


The Red Moon

Summary: -AU-. Konoha had been terrorized by a strange beast. Some say it's a humanoid fox while other say it's a demon. What mysteries lies behind these attacks? Will Sasuke ever realize that the one closer to him is in grave danger? SasuNaru

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It was a bright night on Konoha. The entire town is lighted completely by the wide, round and luminous moon. It's a peaceful night, and one of the busiest days of the year as it's the eve of pumpkin festival.

The town's activities became busier, and guards were all on a break. They all figured that since it's a festival, there shouldn't be much to worry about. Sasuke, the captain of the town guards, and his best friend, Naruto were sitting together, while Naruto is busy chatting about a newly discovered pumpkin-flavored ramen, Sasuke is deep in thought, planning about his friend's birthday.

Naruto was still busy talking when Sasuke interrupted him. "Naruto..."

"Huh? Sasuke? Did you just called my name?"

"Yeah. Uhmm, well, the guys are planning for your party, so I suggest we better get going."

"Huh? My birthday?" The other asked with a confused look on his face.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "You're such a dobe. Have you forgotten it? It's your 16th birthday. Didn't I greeted you earlier?" Upon mentioning it, Naruto paled, but managed to send a goofy grin.

"Oh yeah. I totally forgot. Well, ehehehe, I think we should get going. We don't want to get them waiting." Naruto stood up. "Hmmm isn't that pumpkin-flavored ramen I smell? Come on, let's go Sasuke." Naruto said as he jumped excitedly, leaving Sasuke to look at his disappearing back.

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Sasuke was left wondering what's wrong with his friend. Naruto didn't even bothered to come up with an insult in return to his remark, and what's more, Naruto had been really jumpy earlier on. He thought that he might just be excited with his birthday but when Naruto confirmed that he had forgotten it, then Sasuke know it's not definitely the case. Sasuke stood up, determined to find out what's wrong with his best friend. But that totally slipped through his mind as Sakura and Ino came to greet him.

"Hey there Sasuke-kun. Naruto has already blown the candles. Too bad you missed it. But anyway, do you want to hang out with us today?"

"No, I have something to do with Naruto." Sasuke replied with an uninterested tone, and walked towards the celebration leaving two disappointed girls.

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As Sasuke walked towards the town square, he was greeted by Naruto.

"Hey Sasuke, this is awesome! I never thought that they'd celebrate my birthday in the middle of the town! And what's more! They even had the newly made pumpkin-flavored ramen. Can you believe it? This is the best birthday ever!"

Sasuke just smiled at his happy friend. His early plans totally forgotten as Naruto dragged him.

"Come on Sasuke, you got to taste it! They even made pumpkin cake! Everything is made of pumpkin! The soup, even the rice! It has pumpkin in it! And oh, they also roast pig, chicken and cow with pumpkin stuffings!!" Sasuke just rolled his eyes.

"Of course it is. It is the pumpkin festival after all."

Naruto just pouted. "Hmp, it's still until tomorrow though."

"Yeah, and it's already 11:45 pm. Soon it would be 12:00 a.m and it would be tomorrow, get it?" Sasuke noticed Naruto flinched.

"Naruto?" He questioned.

"It's nothing. Uhh, hey, they're already serving the special ramen with pumpkin noodles! Let's hurry!"

Sasuke grabbed Naruto's wrist as to prevent him from going any further. "That can wait."

"Huh?" Sasuke took a small box from his pocket and placed it above Naruto's palm.

"Woah, this is for me?" Naruto started ripping it excitedly.

"Hn. Happy birthday, dobe." Sasuke said with a hint of affection as Naruto pulled a necklace. It has a silver chain with a blue orb hanging on it. It wasn't specially designed but it was said to be the rarest stone in Konoha.

"Thanks Sasuke!! I loved it" Naruto said, jumping like a kid who got a very expensive present.

"I'm glad you did." Sasuke said as Naruto struggled to place it around his neck. Sasuke held his hand and took the necklace. "Let me..." Sasuke said as he gently placed the necklace around Naruto's neck.

"Thanks Sasuke! I really liked it." Naruto said as he tackled Sasuke with a hug. Sasuke tried to hide his blush, but unfortunately, it covered his face faintly, but luckily, it's not enough for Naruto to notice.

"Naruto, I know you like it and all, but could you please get up, you're heavy." Sasuke said, trying to control his voice and keep his uncaring facade. Naruto blushed and quickly stand up. "Sorry."

"No, it's ok. So do you want to try that new ramen you kept on talking about?" Sasuke asked, changing the subject.

Naruto just shook his head and leaned his head on Sasuke's left shoulder. "Nah, I think I'll spend some time with my best friend." Sasuke smirked at him.

"Getting mushy are we, dobe?"

"Teme!" Naruto replied as he closed his eyes, while Sasuke just smiled to himself. But not sooner than that, their mayor, a.k.a Tsunade has announced something, waking Naruto and pulling them out of their magical world. "Alright citizens of Konoha! It is now 11:59 pm! Join me in the countdown for our pumpkin festival! 59, 58, 57, 56, 55, 54, 53, 52, 51, 50..." As the rest joined in.

"Uhm Naruto, shouldn't we joined in?" Naruto was about to say something but he felt something twitched within him, and his eyes widened. "Oh no." He whispered to himself but Sasuke heard it.

"Naruto? Did you just say something?"

"No, no nothing at all. Listen Sasuke, I got to go use the bathroom. I'll see you later."

Sasuke looked at him doubtingly, but he decided to let it slip and with a nod, Naruto went on his way. Sasuke sighed as he joined in with the rest.

"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1!!" As the fireworks went off, a frightening howl filled the air, blending with the booming sounds of the firework.

Instead of celebrating, everyone stopped, as silence enveloped the town. As everyone gathered in the center, surrounded with well-armed guards, growls and howls soon shook everyone, but that was when Sasuke spoke. "Everyone, stay calm. This is probably just those wolves who reside on the other side of the mountain. There's no need to panic." He said with an emotionless voice, but inside, he was confused. He had been the captain and protector of the town for almost 5 years and this is the first time he encountered something like this. The howl they had just heard wasn't a normal one. It sounded sad, yet horrifying at the same time. Sasuke ordered his guards to take a look around just to make sure.

As the guards decided to patrol the area, they found no sign of the said attacker and they just accepted what what Sasuke said and the celebration continued.

With the people already forgetting the recent horrors and their panic dissolving, Tsunade started again, "Alright, I, Tsunade the mayor of Konoha officially declare the pumpkin festival open." As cheers and whoops of joy filled the air, everyone was brought to a halt when the nearest post fell down, and bringing with it the lanterns and lights, though it didn't do much since the moon is brightly shining, so it didn't affect the brightness of the surroundings. Due to this, they were given a clear view of the events that were bound to happen.

As gasps and whispers filled the area, three guards were tossed into the air as a monstrous fox begin attacking, causing destruction in its wake. But instead of acting, Sasuke watched the monster with complete fascination, mesmerized by the beautiful creature in front of him. It had red eyes with golden fur and his backbone is graced with red streaks. The said creature is now moving towards him. Sasuke could have sworn a blue stone hanging on its neck, but he was too shocked to actually think.

As the fox advanced on him, Shikamaru managed to stab it in the side with his sword. The fox howled in pain as it dashed off to the forest. Sasuke was then shaken out of it and has now realized what has just happened. Shikamaru realized that Sasuke had totally spaced out, but he just shrugged it off, and after muttering a "Troublesome" under his breath, he met up with the guards and gave them the next instructions to gather the townspeople and send them to safety.

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"Are you alright captain?" A guard inquired only to receive a "Hn" as Sasuke took a seat, still trying to calm himself.

Just then, he was approached by Tsunade. "Are you alright Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn. I'm fine. But what I'm worried about is Naruto. I haven't seen him." Saying this, Tsunade's eyes widened. "Do you think something bad had happened to him?"

"No, I think not. Naruto said he have to use the bathroom. I'll have the guards patrolling the area and leading the citizens to their home."

"Sasuke, we wont know what made that thing attack or when would it attack next. I want you to investigate on this. Also, I want you to make sure the safety of my grandson! Find Naruto! That's your top priority."

But before Sasuke could reply, a high-pitched voice interrupted them. "But Tsunade-sama, would you prioritize Naruto over the safety of the townspeople? I don't care if he's your grandson but shouldn't we ensure the safety of the town first? He's probably just hiding somewhere." Sakura said, irritated over the attention they were giving Naruto.

"I didn't ask for your advice Sakura. Remember, you may be my adviser, but I'm the mayor, and I say, you find Naruto! Nobody rests until he is found, safe and alive! Now go." Tsunade said as she left the scene.

Sasuke was shocked about Tsunade's action at first, but he understood it, considering the situation. It was an unexplained event in konoha. _'Hm, I think I'll just wait for Naruto. He can just be at one of the bathrooms. Yeah! That's it! You're a genius Sasuke! There's no need to worry.'_

With this in thought, Sasuke walked towards his men as they searched the woods for any clue. Sadly for him, Naruto never appeared that night.


End file.
